As part of a Rs 60-crore renovation and modernization programme, Victoria Memorial authorities are revamping existing galleries and adding two new ones to create more space for exhibition of its priceless treasure trove.

For want of display space, much of the museum's prized possessions like the world's third largest oil painting by Russian artist Veretchagin have been away from the public eye for a long time, the memorial's Curator Dr Jayanta Sengupta said.

Measuring 274 inches by 196, the painting shows the state entry of King Edward VII, then prince of Wales, into Jaipur in 1876.

Once ready in the next 1-2 years, the museum authorities will be able to put on display around 10,000-12,000 objects at any time from its 33,000-strong collection.

While the Memorial authorities own more than 28,000 objects, another 5000 paintings from the Bengal School of Art, which was spearheaded by Abanindranath Tagore, are on loan from Rabindra Bharati Society.

Only around 10 percent of them are put on display now.

Under the guidance of Scottish conservation expert James Simpson, the authorities are modernizing all the existing nine galleries with climate control features.

To create more space, administrative and accounts departments have been moved out from the main building.

"We would turn it into a museum completely. We don't want to waste the prime space. Victoria Memorial would be a unique combination of heritage, beautiful architecture and museum," the curator said.

Thrown open to the public in 1921, Victoria Memorial was designed by famous British architect Sir William Emerson and conceived by Lord Curzon after the death of Queen Victoria.

Being executed by the National Buildings Construction Corporation, the Union Ministry of Culture is funding the make-over plan. Victoria will celebrate its centenary in 2021 and the entire renovation programme is scheduled to be completed by March 2017.

Storage space will also be expanded while the oil-painting restoration unit will be upgraded into a state-of-the-art-facility.